MP SAYS SENATE AMENDMENTS OF CRIME BILL PUT SAFETY OF CHILDREN AT RISK

OTTAWA, ON - Candice Hoeppner, Member of Parliament for
Portage-Lisgar, is dismayed the Liberal-dominated Senate amended a
bill targeting people who sell drugs to kids, once again weakening
the Conservative government's action to get tough on crime.

The Liberal-dominated Senate voted recently to remove the mandatory
minimum sentence requirement for some drug offenders from Bill C-15.

The bill would have cracked down on criminals by ensuring mandatory
jail time for serious drug offences that involve organized crime,
violence, or preying on youth.

"Michael Ignatieff needs to explain to Canadians why his Liberal
Senators gutted this important piece of anti-crime legislation,"
Hoeppner stated.

"Mr. Ignatieff keeps saying that he is tough on crime, but time after
time, when it comes down to it, he's not supporting our measures to
tackle crime, and he's putting the safety of children at risk as a result."

Under the legislation, persons found guilty of trafficking who also
had previous drug convictions would have received a minimum one-year
prison term.

With the new amendments of the Senate, mandatory terms would apply
only if the offender had spent a year or more behind bars for their
previous conviction.

Hoeppner noted that the Senate amendments mean that people
trafficking in up to 200 marijuana plants don't face mandatory jail time.

"Our legislation would have had a significant impact at street-level
in targeting those individuals who sell drugs to kids - often gateway
drugs like marijuana that lead to increased drug use."

"Our government remains concerned about drug use, and we will
continue to do whatever it takes to overcome Liberal soft-on-crime
ideology and partisan gamesmanship to keep Canadian families and
children safe," Hoeppner concluded.